The Devil's Arm
by Zarosguth
Summary: Raven lives in a small house in a clearing in the forest right next to Ruben village. The villagers fear him and especially the village's high magician loathes him with a passion. One day he hears a cry for help in the forest and runs off towards the source of that cry.
1. An Introduction

_**Author's note:  
**__**My first go at a sad story. That's all I really have to say about this. This story will probably only be about three chapters long. Once it's finished I will go back to working on 'The Silver Nasod Mansion'. I was going to get this up after the one-shot I was working on but that one-shot will have to wait just a little bit longer. So in the mean time, have this story instead.**_

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**Chapter 1: An Introduction**

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In a small, simple house in a clearing in the middle of the forest near the village of Ruben, there lived a man. A man with long black hair with a streak of red, tanned skin, yellow-golden eyes and scars all over his face and body. His most noticeable characteristic however, was his left arm. It wasn't a normal arm. No, it was a mechanical Nasod arm. The people of the village shunned and feared this man. Calling him a freak and a monster. His most popular nickname however, was 'The Devil's Arm'. This is his story. The story of a man named Raven.

Raven rarely visited the village of Ruben. He lived a mostly self-sufficient life in his home in the forest. Only visiting the village occasionally to buy any materials or supplies he couldn't produce himself. Whenever he did visit the village, the villagers would stand still, stare and whisper. Raven didn't mind. He simply went about his business so he could go back to his house as soon as possible, where things were peaceful and quiet.

The shopkeeper didn't speak much. He just wanted Raven out of his shop as quickly as possible. Raven bought a small supply of cloth so he could make some new clothing for the upcoming winter. Exiting the shop Raven was met with one of the few villagers that would actually go out of their way to confront him. He didn't know the man's name but he would recognize him anywhere. All Raven knew about this man was that he was a powerful magician.

"Showing your ugly face here again huh?" The magician tried to provoke Raven. Raven kept quiet, instead he only stared the magician straight in the eye, forcing the magician to look away. As he looked away the magician spoke with an annoyed tone of voice: "Just leave us alone you freak!"

Raven simply walked away, not speaking a word but with a certain confidence in his steps that infuriated the magician. "_How dare that freak act so high and mighty? I'll show him!_" The magician whipped out his wand and as Raven was walking through the village gates he cast a fireball at Raven's back. Raven felt the fireball approaching. He turned around and blocked it with the palm of his Nasod claw.

The villagers all fell completely silent, their whispers stopped. The tension rose as Raven looked at the magician with threatening eyes. The villagers feared that a fight would break out between 'the Devil's Arm' and the village's High Magician. Raven didn't allow himself to be provoked like this though. He simply turned around once again and left in silence. Not even looking behind him.

When Raven had disappeared into the forest a few villagers walked up to the magician in anger.  
"What if you two had started fighting?"  
"Innocent bystanders could have gotten hurt!"  
"You could've burned down the entire village!"  
Overcome with shame, the magician apologized to his fellow villagers. His embarrassment only served to fuel his hatred against Raven.  
"_That damn freak! Why doesn't he leave us alone? His very existence is disgusting!_"

Back at his house in the forest Raven had just finished storing his newly-bought fabric and was walking into his workshop next to his house. In his workshop he had all the necessary equipment for glassblowing. Raven originally picked up glassblowing as a hobby to quell his boredom. Recently he had started selling his work to peddler known as Helen to earn himself some money should he need to buy things at the village. Raven used the fire from the flamethrower that was installed in his arm to light the furnace.

"_What to make today? A few small glass statuettes? Something more practical?_" Raven sighed. "_I wonder if the people that buy my work from Helen like it?_" Raven shook his head. "_No, I shouldn't waste my time thinking about that. I just need to survive. I need to stay alive so their memory lives on._" Raven fought back a tear. He no longer felt like doing any work today. He extinguished the furnace and went back into his house.

Back in his house, Raven walked up to a wooden chest next to his bed. He opened it and looked inside with a pained look on his face. Inside the chest was an old black uniform and a well-crafted sword. Raven took the sword out of the chest and looked at it. The sword looked like it was new. Its blade still sharp. Raven felt a tear run down his cheek. He was shivering and he gritted his teeth.

His grieving was cut short when he heard a cry for help coming from the forest. He shot up, his entire body on high alert. Without hesitation he gripped his sword tightly in his hand and stormed out the front door.

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_**I hope you enjoyed that little cliff-hanger and that it gave you enough incentive to check this story again once chapter two is up. I'd be delighted if you could leave me some feedback. Does a story like this require more detail? Less detail? Writing a sad story is completely new to me. Heh, writing stories in general still feels rather new to me. Oh well. I'll probably keep writing until I run into the dreaded and feared writer's block. (No signs of that happening yet though.)**_

_**May we meet again, fare thee well**_


	2. An Unexpected Meeting

_**Author's note:  
**__**When we last left Raven he was storming out through his front door towards the sound of someone screaming for help.**_

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**Chapter 2: An Unexpected Meeting**

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Raven rushed through the forest, going in the direction of the cry he had heard earlier. As he was nearing the source of the sound he heard two voices. One was female. Still young, probably around eighteen years old and clearly distressed. The other voice was male and taunting the female voice. It didn't take Raven long to find the source of the sounds and hid in some bushes nearby. From there he saw a young girl with purple hair that she wore in pigtails. She reminded him of a certain man that loathed him. With her was a bandit. The bandit was holding what appeared to be a staff in one hand and a sword in the other.

"Give me back my staff!" The girl demanded.  
"I don't think so. Don't want you to be shootin' me with fireballs or somethin'!" The bandit replied. "Now give me all yer money!"  
"I told you before! I have no money!" The girl almost cried.  
"In that case, what good are ya? I'll just kill ya here an' now!" The bandit prepared to strike the girl with his sword. The girl closed her eyes and shielded her face with her arms. As she dreaded the blade cutting her the girl suddenly heard a clanging noise. Slowly opening her eyes she saw the bandit was no longer holding his sword, looking around the saw the sword lying on the ground nearby.

"Who the hell are you, you bastard!?" The bandit demanded. The girl looked in the direction the bandit was looking and saw a man she recognized from somewhere. Raven had shot the sword from the bandit's hand with a flaming bullet from his arm and now stood out in the open, glaring at the bandit. Suddenly without warning Raven shot forward to the bandit and grabbed him with his Nasod claw.  
"What're you going to do now bastard? Slit my throat?" The bandit smirked tauntingly.  
Raven didn't reply. He threw the bandit a meter or two back and motioned the bandit to go away.  
"What!? Don't get so cocky you bastard! You will pay once I tell our leader, Banthus, what you did!"  
Raven's eyes suddenly filled with rage. He pointed the palm of his claw at the bandit. Without hesitation or mercy, Raven overheated his arm to activate his flame-thrower, firing a stream of flames from his arm, burning the bandit to death. The girl witnessed the spectacle and while very afraid, couldn't keep her eyes away from what was happening. She saw the back of the man she now realized was the one she knew as 'the Devil's Arm' as he was burning a person to death with flames shooting from that exact arm. When Raven stopped his flame-thrower he turned to the girl. The girl was still fixated on the burning corpse of the bandit.

Raven crouched in front of the girl who had sunk to her knees. He looked her in the eyes. His eyes seemed cold and simultaneously sad. Now fully grasping what had just happened it became too much for the girl and she passed out.

"Ugh…" The girl groaned as she woke up. She instantly sat up as soon as she realized she didn't know the room she was in. She looked around and saw a whole bunch of shelves filled with glass crafts. Then her eye fell on the person sitting in front of a fireplace. He was stirring in a small pot hanging above the fireplace. She observed the man scooping some sort of soup from the pot and pouring it into a bowl. The light from the fireplace fell on the man's left arm and she instantly remembered what had happened. She had seen how the man who was now cooking soup burned a man to death without flinching. She was scared but somehow she also felt slightly at ease.

The man finished pouring soup in a second bowl and walked up to her. He didn't say a word and just handed her one of the bowls and a spoon.  
"T-thank you." The girl stuttered. The man nodded and proceeded to eat his soup. The two ate in silence. When they'd finished their food the girl gathered her courage and spoke:  
"U-um, I am Aisha. What is your name?" The man looked at her.  
"Raven." His voice sounded hoarse, as if he hadn't spoken in ages. Aisha, however, was glad to learn that Raven could speak.  
"You saved me from that bandit didn't you?" She asked. Raven nodded. "Thank you." Aisha smiled. Raven looked at her. It had been so long since he'd ever seen someone smile. He'd almost forgotten what a smile looked like. Her smile made him smile. His smile was small and barely noticeable, but it made Aisha feel save. Aisha looked out the window. It was night-time.  
"How long have I been unconscious?" She asked. Raven shrugged. He hadn't had a grasp on the flow of time for so long.

Aisha was curious about Raven. He was a mysterious man. The people in the village and especially her parents had always said that he was some kind of monster_. But how could that be true if he'd saved her life? A monster wouldn't do such a thing. _She looked back at the glass bottles and statuettes and various other glass trinkets that were spread out on the shelves.  
"Did you make those? They're beautiful." Raven nodded both in confirmation and as thanks for the compliment.

Aisha started to feel sleepy.  
"Is it okay for me to spend the night here?" Raven nodded and took the empty bowl from Aisha and put it away, along with his own bowl. Raven spread a blanket on the floor, grabbed a spare bed sheet and a pillow and went to lie down.  
"Oh no, I'm sorry. This must be your bed." Aisha felt sorry for Raven having to sleep on the floor.  
"It's alright." Raven said. That was only the second time he spoke since she met him. She got a better impression of his voice, which sounded a bit clearer than before. His voice was deep but gentle. _He was definitely not a monster._

The next day Aisha woke up and found herself alone in the room she'd spent the night in. In daylight she noticed the glass trinkets to be even more beautiful. She stood up and walked out of the one-room house. She saw the workshop next to the house and noticed smoke coming from its chimney. She quietly walked up to the workshop and opened the door. Inside, she saw Raven blowing in a long pipe. At the end of the pipe a glass bubble appeared. She observed how Raven controlled his breath to shape the molten glass into a small bottle. When Raven noticed Aisha looking at him he stopped what he was doing and walked up to her.  
"Sorry to disturb you." Aisha whispered quietly. Raven shook his head and led Aisha back inside. There he quickly prepared a few sandwiches and the both of them ate breakfast in silence. When breakfast was finished Aisha suddenly realized how she'd been away from home for an entire night. Her parents must be worried sick!  
"Raven?" Raven looked at Aisha with his head cocked to the side. "I want to go home." Aisha almost felt like crying. She wanted to let her parents know she was safe. And who it was that'd saved her.

Raven felt bad for the poor girl and nodded.  
"This afternoon." He said.

Raven and Aisha were walking through the forest. Raven in the lead, Aisha following close behind. As they had reached the edge of the forest Raven stopped.  
"Aren't you coming with me?" Aisha asked. Raven shook his head. He reached inside the bag he'd taken with him and pulled something out.  
"My staff! You got it!" Aisha smiled happily. Raven gave her the staff and smiled another barely noticeable smile.  
"Thank you Raven, I will never forget what you've done for me." Aisha said as she bowed. She then turned to the village and left. Raven sighed. He felt happy. He watched Aisha walk into the village and when he no longer saw her he turned around and went back into the forest.

"Aisha!" Her father was overjoyed to see her. "You're back! Where were you? Your mother and I were so worried!"  
"I ran into a bandit in the forest." Aisha started to explain.  
"Oh dear, are you alright?"  
"I'm fine dad. Someone saved me from the bandit."  
"Someone saved you?"  
"Yes, and you'll never guess who it was. It was…" Aisha hesitated. She knew how much her father hated Raven. But she had to tell him now.  
"So tell me dear, who was it that saved you?"  
"It was… Raven, 'the Devil's Arm'." It felt weird to call him by his nickname now that she had met him and had learned his name. But she knew her father would otherwise not know who she was talking about. Aisha's father's eyes widened.  
"What? Are you… serious? Him!?" Aisha stepped back as she saw her father getting very angry.  
"How? Why? Does this mean I am indebted… to that freak!?"  
"He is not a freak!" Aisha shouted. She immediately slapped her hand in front of her mouth.  
"What did you say? Is my own daughter on _his_ side?"  
"He saved me…" Aisha whispered. She was afraid but she couldn't stand her father speaking ill of the man that had saved her.  
"If you like him that much, why don't you go live with him!?" Aisha father was furious. He couldn't believe how his own daughter, the daughter of the village's High Magician, could turn against him.

Aisha's eyes filled with tears. She turned away from her father and ran. Out of the village, back to the forest, back to Raven.

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_**Well, that escalated quite quickly didn't it? I hope it didn't go too quickly. Feedback on that kind of stuff is always appreciated. Next chapter will be the conclusion. A short story yes. Hopefully it is enjoyable nonetheless. The finale is when the true tragedy comes in. Just a fair warning.**_

_**May we meet again, fare thee well**_


	3. Blind Hatred

_**Author's note:  
**_

_**This is the finale. I will warn you that the ending is somewhat bitter-sweet. It is by no means a 'happy end'.**_

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**Chapter 3: Blind Hatred**

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Raven was very surprised when Aisha appeared before him. She was shivering was quietly sobbing. They stood there for a second in front of Raven's house when Aisha couldn't control herself anymore. She hugged Raven and cried out loud. Raven was stunned for a second. He slowly returned her embrace, trying to comfort her.

Between her sobs Aisha told Raven what had happened. Raven didn't know what to do so he just held her closely as she cried.  
"_So that's why she looked so familiar… she's _his_ daughter._" Raven thought to himself. Once Aisha started to calm down Raven led her into his house where he prepared some tea. As they sat there drinking their tea, Aisha asked Raven a question that had been on her mind since they first met the day before:  
"W-what is the story behind your, your a-arm?" She asked nervously, unsure of how Raven would react to that question. But she just wanted to know. Raven kept quiet for a good five minutes. Aisha didn't dare to speak. She was just about to say something when Raven started to explain.

_Raven was a commoner from Velder. He made a living as captain of the Black Crow Mercenaries. But one day he was betrayed by a nobleman whom he had thought to be a friend. Raven found himself wrongly accused of treason and was sent to prison. His comrades, under command of his fiancée, Seris, set up a ploy to break him out of prison. Alas, it was a trap. Raven witnessed how all of his comrades as well as his fiancée were killed in right in front of him. Once everyone else was dead Raven was left, severely injured. He was thought to be dead but he wasn't._

_His horribly battered body was found by a group of corrupted Nasods who started to use him as a guinea pig for their human-nasod conversion experiments. These experiments led to his Nasod arm. Eventually he managed to escape his Nasod captors. Tired and beaten, Raven started to wander until he finally happened upon Ruben Village._

Aisha didn't know how to react. _This man had been through so much. But his voice as he told her all of this was so calm and gentle. How dare her father say this man was a monster? He had no idea what kind of man Raven was! He had no right!_ Aisha was even more furious at her father now.

The following days Aisha lived together with Raven. Raven didn't speak much but he was friendly and a good listener. Aisha had found Raven to be very reliable as well. One morning Aisha was taking a hike through the forest when she heard a couple of unfamiliar voices. She quickly hid in the bushes. From her hiding place she saw a group of bandits. One bandit, obviously the leader, was a very tall man with a giant scar across his face. He was holding a huge sword.  
"Ha ha ha! We will attack the village this afternoon! They won't know what hit them!" The leader exclaimed.  
"But, boss. What about those Red Knights we heard about?" A bandit asked.  
"Don't worry. We outnumber them easily! They're toast! As sure as my name is Banthus!" Banthus roared with laughter.

Aisha sneaked away and stormed back to Raven's house. Once she arrived there she explained to Raven what she had heard. Raven quietly walked towards the chest next to his bed. Aisha never even noticed that chest was there. Raven opened the chest and took out the black uniform. Aisha quickly left the house to give Raven some privacy to change his clothes. When Raven stepped outside she looked at him. _Was that uniform…? It must've been!_ She also looked at the sword he was holding and recognized it as the sword he was holding when he saved her from the bandit.

When the morning gave way to the afternoon, Raven and Aisha went to the village. When they neared it they could see that the bandits had already opened their attack. The Red Knights fought bravely but were being defeated due to a sheer difference in numbers, just like Banthus had predicted. Raven and Aisha ran into the village to aid the Red Knights. Raven set his sword on fire with his Nasod arm and swung it in the direction of a group of bandits. The flames from his sword converged into a crow-shaped fireball which ploughed right through a huge number of the bandits. Aisha cast Meteor Shower and also did away with another group of bandits. The villagers that had locked themselves inside their homes for safety saw what was happening out of their windows. They watched as 'the Devil's Arm' together with the High Magician's daughter hacked and slashed their way through the bandits until there were only the two of them and the bandit leader, Banthus, left.

"So you think you have a chance against me!? Hah! That's rich! Bring it on you bastards!" Banthus roared. Raven stared him down and motioned Aisha to take cover. Aisha nodded and ran away.  
"Worried about your little girlfriend are ya? No worries. Once I'm done with you, she'll be next!" Raven readied his blade and took on a battle stance. Banthus rushed forward and swung his sword at Raven. Raven blocked the sword effortlessly with his claw and pushed Banthus back. Banthus immediately attacked again. This time Raven evaded the slash and punched Banthus square in the stomach. Banthus slid back due to the huge force of Raven's punch.  
"Not bad!" He scoffed. "But I'm just getting warmed up!" Banthus focused his energy and a glowing red aura appeared around him.

"Now we're going to have fun!" Banthus once again charged up but this time he fired a red laser beam from his amulet. Raven only just managed to block the beam with his sword. Raven kept calm and focused as well. He also had a glowing red aura appear around him. But not only that, a small Nasod core appeared beside Raven. Banthus and Raven stared at each other. Then, without warning they lunged at each other. When they collided, a giant explosion came out of nowhere. The explosion threw up a whole bunch of dust and smoke. It was silent. There was a nerve wreaking tension in the air.

The dust slowly settled and there were two silhouettes standing there. The bigger of the two collapsed as the dust settled completely. Raven stood there over the body of the bandits' leader. Aisha came out from her hiding place, ran towards Raven and hugged him.  
"You did it! You saved everyone!" Raven smiled and hugged Aisha back.  
"Ah!" Aisha yelped as Raven's embrace suddenly became very tight. She looked up and felt her strength leave her. She saw her father standing behind Raven, holding a knife which had its blade stuck in Raven's back.

Raven collapsed. Aisha tried to support him and fell to her knees. She felt tears welling up in her eyes. She looked up at her father who had a deranged look on his face.  
"I did it!" He yelled. "I killed that monster!"  
"The only monster… is you!" Aisha shouted. "This man saved our village. And you killed him!" The other villagers had seen what had happened. They exited their houses and walked up to the High Magician. The villagers looked at the High Magician with anger in their eyes. They restrained the High Magician and took his wand. Aisha couldn't think clearly anymore. She grabbed Raven's sword that lie next to them and lunged for her father, who was now held by a group of villagers. Right before she could strike him she felt two arms grabbing her and holding her tightly.  
"Stop! He's not worth it!" A young man's voice said. Aisha looked behind her and saw that the person who had grabbed her was a young member of the Red Knights. The young knight had red hair and red eyes.

"He will pay. But not like this." The red-headed knight told her. Aisha calmed down and dropped Raven's sword. The knight let her go and she walked up to her father.  
"Aisha!" Her father said. "I did it for your safety." Aisha slapped her father across the face.  
"Don't say my name. You don't have the right to call me by my name. You're not my father. I am _not_ your daughter." She turned away from him and walked up to Raven's lifeless body. She kneeled next to it and held Raven's hand, which was still warm.  
"Take the High Magician away." The young knight said. As he was taken away the High Magician shouted Aisha's name multiple times but Aisha didn't turn around. The red-headed knight walked up to Aisha and stood beside her.  
"We will get him a proper burial. He saved us all. He will not be forgotten." Aisha nodded.  
"Did you know him well?" The knight asked.  
"I knew him well enough." Aisha answered.  
"Can you tell me about him?"

"I will tell you everything. His story is one that we mustn't forget. We mustn't forget the man that despite being hated by all, did not hate. The man that saved us despite owing us nothing. We will _not_ forget the story of Raven, 'the Devil's Arm', the 'Hero of Ruben'."

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_**I hope my first go at a sad story did not disappoint. If you'd like to see me tackle another sad story in the future feel free to leave me a review. Also if you have any criticism or feedback that would also be greatly appreciated. With that…**_

_**May we meet again, fare thee well**_


End file.
